A three-day blockade of road, rail and waterways, enforced by BNP and like-minded opposition parties, across the country began this morning to mount pressure on the Awami League government to quit and hold the next election under a non-party, neutral administration.
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami also enforced the blockade simultaneously from this morning to Thursday evening with the same demands.
Apart from BNP and Jamaat, the 12-party alliance, Jatiyatabadi Samamona Jote, LDP, Gonoforum and People’s Party, Gonotantrik Bam Oikya, Gono Odhikar Parishad, Labour Party and NDM are also observing the programme separately.
Meanwhile, AL has vowed to resist any violence during the blockade.
Read more: Jamaat to observe countrywide blockade program on Oct 31 and Nov 1-2
Police and other law enforcement agencies have already alerted their units to increase vigilance and beef up security across the country.
Police have also taken up positions and set up checkpoints at the entry points and all major points of Dhaka.
After observing a day-long hartal, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Sunday evening announced the countrywide blockade for three consecutive days.
He, however, said vehicles of newspapers or media, ambulances and vehicles transporting oxygen cylinders and medicines will remain out of the purview of the three-day blockade.
Read more: BNP sends letter to foreign missions blaming govt, police for Oct 28 violence